Placeholder Content Image

"I am a woman": Boxer launches legal action after gold medal win

<p>Imane Khelif has filed an official complaint over online bullying and harassment she has been subject to throughout the course of the Paris Olympics.</p> <p>The Algerian boxer, who took home the gold medal in the women's competition, has been at the centre of a wave of abuse over her gender, with misinformation circulating over her gender. </p> <p>According to Khelif's lawyer Nabil Boudi, the gold medallist has filed a legal complaint in France for online harassment.</p> <p>“The boxer Imane Khelif has decided to begin a new fight, a fight for justice, dignity and honour,” Boudi said in a statement, saying Khelif had filed the complaint for “aggravated online harassment … to Paris prosecutors”.</p> <p>He added, “The investigation will determine who was behind this misogynist, racist and sexist campaign, but will also have to concern itself with those who fed the online lynching.”</p> <p>The “iniquitous harassment” the boxing champion had been subjected to would remain “the biggest stain on these Olympic Games”, said Boudi.</p> <p>On Saturday, Khelif emerged victorious in the women’s 66kg final against China’s Yang Liu in a unanimous points decision, having been the focus of intense scrutiny in the French capital for the duration of the Games. </p> <p>After her victory, Khelif said the gold medal she had won was the best response to her critics.</p> <p>Asked by reporters about the row over her eligibility, she said, “I am fully qualified to take part, I am a woman like any other. I was born a woman, lived a woman and competed as a woman.”</p> <p><em>Image credits: Ulrik Pedersen/CSM/Shutterstock Editorial </em></p>

Legal

Placeholder Content Image

"Misleading": IOC condemns "abuse" hurled at Olympic boxer

<p>The International Olympic Committee (IOC) has released a statement to condemn the "abuse" and "discrimination" that has targeted Algerian boxer Imane Khelif after her controversial match in Paris. </p> <p>The match, which was abandoned after just 46 seconds when her Italian opponent Angela Carini tapped out, caused quite the stir when Carini said she had "never been hit that hard in my life". </p> <p>Following the controversial match, Khelif's history came to light with many pointing out how she was permitted to fight at the Olympics despite being disqualified from the women’s boxing world championships last year for failing gender eligibility tests.</p> <p>Khelif, who was born female and has always identified as such,  has been hit with a wave of transphobic abuse from high profile figures including J.K Rowling and Elon Musk after the revelations came to light. </p> <p>The 25-year-old athlete, who has been boxing since she was a child and has always competed in women’s categories, was tested by the International Boxing Association (IBA) with IBA president Umar Kremlev saying DNA tests had “proved they had XY chromosomes and were thus excluded”.</p> <p>For males, XY is the combination of chromosomes while XX is the combination in females.</p> <p>As Khelif has always identified as female, there are a number of medical conditions that can cause a woman to also have XY chromosomes.</p> <p>The IOC has since spoken out in defence of Khelif, denouncing the “abuse” levelled at the Khelif as “discrimination”, while confirming she had followed the eligibility criteria to compete at the Games. </p> <p>“Every person has the right to practise sport without discrimination,” the <a href="https://olympics.com/ioc/news/joint-paris-2024-boxing-unit-ioc-statement" target="_blank" rel="noopener">statement</a> released on Friday said. </p> <p>“We have seen in reports misleading information about two female athletes competing at the Olympic Games Paris 2024."</p> <p>The second athlete in question is referring to fellow boxer, Chinese Taipei’s Lin Yu-ting, who underwent the same testing from the IBA and returned the same XY chromosome results as Khelif.</p> <p>“The two athletes have been competing in international boxing competitions for many years in the women’s category, including the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020, International Boxing Association (IBA) World Championships and IBA-sanctioned tournaments."</p> <p>“The IOC is saddened by the abuse that the two athletes are currently receiving.”</p> <p>The statement went on to call out the IBA's DNA testing, reading, "The current aggression against these two athletes is based entirely on this arbitrary decision, which was taken without any proper procedure – especially considering that these athletes had been competing in top-level competition for many years."</p> <p>"Such an approach is contrary to good governance."</p> <p><em>Image credits: Facebook/YAHYA ARHAB/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock Editorial</em></p>

Legal

Placeholder Content Image

Why Iman won’t remarry after Bowie’s death

<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Supermodel and entrepreneur Iman has spoken about life after the passing of her husband David Bowie, as well as their 26 years together.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“I knew him as the man, David Jones, his real name,” she told </span><em><a rel="noopener" href="https://people.com/style/iman-says-shell-never-remarry-after-david-bowie-death/" target="_blank"><span style="font-weight: 400;">People</span></a></em><span style="font-weight: 400;"> in a new interview. “And not the rockstar.”</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">The pair first met in 1990 in an unusual fashion, after Teddy Antolin, Bowie’s hairdresser and longtime friend, set them up on a blind date.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">In an interview with </span><em><a rel="noopener" href="https://www.smoothradio.com/news/music/david-bowie-met-wife-iman/" target="_blank"><span style="font-weight: 400;">WC2H smoothradio</span></a></em><span style="font-weight: 400;">, Antolin shared how Iman and Bowie instantly connected.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“She had a big smile, and she and David looked at each other… it was love at first sight, you could feel the electricity, something went off” Antolin </span><a href="https://honey.nine.com.au/latest/love-stories-david-bowie-and-iman-owe-their-love-story-to-a-hairdresser/896551b1-97be-42b3-8343-5ea226af5a0e"><span style="font-weight: 400;">said</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Iman recalled that it took her a few months to feel the same way as Bowie.</span></p> <blockquote style="background: #FFF; border: 0; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: 0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width: 540px; min-width: 326px; padding: 0; width: calc(100% - 2px);" class="instagram-media" data-instgrm-captioned="" data-instgrm-permalink="https://www.instagram.com/p/COGEcxoFlcM/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" data-instgrm-version="14"> <div style="padding: 16px;"> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: row; align-items: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;"></div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;"></div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;"></div> </div> </div> <div style="padding: 19% 0;"></div> <div style="display: block; height: 50px; margin: 0 auto 12px; width: 50px;"></div> <div style="padding-top: 8px;"> <div style="color: #3897f0; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: 550; line-height: 18px;">View this post on Instagram</div> </div> <p style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px; margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 8px; overflow: hidden; padding: 8px 0 7px; text-align: center; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;"><a style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none;" rel="noopener" href="https://www.instagram.com/p/COGEcxoFlcM/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" target="_blank">A post shared by IMAN (@the_real_iman)</a></p> </div> </blockquote> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“David said it was love at first sight. It took me a few months but I got there,” she </span><a rel="noopener" href="https://www.harpersbazaar.com/celebrity/latest/a38278397/iman-will-not-remarry-after-david-bowie-death/" target="_blank"><span style="font-weight: 400;">said</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">After their first date, the </span><span style="font-weight: 400;">Starman</span><span style="font-weight: 400;"> singer filled Iman’s hotel room with gardenias following her appearance on the Thierry Mugler runway in Paris, and went on to meet her at the airport when she returned to LA.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">In her latest interview, Iman recalled another sweet moment: “Early on, we were walking down the street and my shoelace came undone, and he got on his knees to tie it for me and I thought </span><em><span style="font-weight: 400;">he’s the one</span></em><span style="font-weight: 400;">.”</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Bowie and Iman were engaged within a few months, before marrying on June 6, 1992 in Florence, Italy.</span></p> <blockquote style="background: #FFF; border: 0; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: 0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width: 540px; min-width: 326px; padding: 0; width: calc(100% - 2px);" class="instagram-media" data-instgrm-captioned="" data-instgrm-permalink="https://www.instagram.com/p/CSmdaXwrPzn/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" data-instgrm-version="14"> <div style="padding: 16px;"> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: row; align-items: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;"></div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;"></div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;"></div> </div> </div> <div style="padding: 19% 0;"></div> <div style="display: block; height: 50px; margin: 0 auto 12px; width: 50px;"></div> <div style="padding-top: 8px;"> <div style="color: #3897f0; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: 550; line-height: 18px;">View this post on Instagram</div> </div> <p style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px; margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 8px; overflow: hidden; padding: 8px 0 7px; text-align: center; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;"><a style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none;" rel="noopener" href="https://www.instagram.com/p/CSmdaXwrPzn/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" target="_blank">A post shared by IMAN (@the_real_iman)</a></p> </div> </blockquote> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">The couple welcomed their daughter, Alexandra Zahra Jones, eight years later.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Despite their fame, the pair were quite private and only a few close friends and colleagues knew of Bowie’s various health concerns, including his cancer diagnosis in 2014.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Two days after the release of his album, </span><em><span style="font-weight: 400;">Blackstar</span></em><span style="font-weight: 400;">, the star’s 18-month battle with cancer came to an end.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">While processing the loss of her husband, Iman said she was inspired to create her first fragrance called Love Memoir. She added that the idea came after she spent time in their New York home during the pandemic, and that it was a “monument to eternal love”.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Shortly after Bowie’s passing, Iman said she couldn’t face spending too much time at their home.</span></p> <blockquote style="background: #FFF; border: 0; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: 0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width: 540px; min-width: 326px; padding: 0; width: calc(100% - 2px);" class="instagram-media" data-instgrm-captioned="" data-instgrm-permalink="https://www.instagram.com/p/CWqmyktrR-m/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" data-instgrm-version="14"> <div style="padding: 16px;"> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: row; align-items: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;"></div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;"></div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;"></div> </div> </div> <div style="padding: 19% 0;"></div> <div style="display: block; height: 50px; margin: 0 auto 12px; width: 50px;"></div> <div style="padding-top: 8px;"> <div style="color: #3897f0; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: 550; line-height: 18px;">View this post on Instagram</div> </div> <p style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px; margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 8px; overflow: hidden; padding: 8px 0 7px; text-align: center; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;"><a style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none;" rel="noopener" href="https://www.instagram.com/p/CWqmyktrR-m/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" target="_blank">A post shared by Love Memoir by IMAN (@lovememoir)</a></p> </div> </blockquote> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“I just got very sad and would rush back to the city,” the Iman Cosmetics founder said. “I thought I had processed [the loss] but I had not.”</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">The fragrance combines two sweet details honouring the couple’s time together: woodsy vetiver, in a nod to Bowie’s favourite fragrance; and bergamot from Tuscany, where the couple were wed.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Recalling the moment her daughter asked if she would ever remarry, Iman said: “I said, ‘No, I will not.’ I still feel married.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“Someone a few years ago referred to David as my late husband and I said, ‘No, he’s not my late husband. He’s my husband.’”</span></p> <p><em><span style="font-weight: 400;">Image: @the_real_iman (Instagram)</span></em></p>

Relationships

Placeholder Content Image

David Bowie’s wife Iman shares rare photo of their daughter

<p>Music legend David Bowie’s wife, Iman, has shared a photograph of their daughter Alexandria “Lexi” Zahra Jones on her 16th birthday.</p> <p>The usually private supermodel couldn’t be happier celebrating her daughter’s milestone birthday, posting the picture to her Instagram with the caption: “Happy sweet 16th birthday to my baby girl Lexi! Stay sweet ‘Classy with a hint of sassy’ #selfportrait #LexiLove.”</p> <p><img width="500" height="600" src="https://oversixtydev.blob.core.windows.net/media/26055/lexi-jones_500x600.jpg" alt="Lexi Jones" style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"/></p> <p>The black-and-white photo of Lexi bears a striking resemblance to her model mum, but internet users were quick to point out the likeness to her late father.</p> <p>“She's beautiful, I see a lot of David Bowie,” one user commented.</p> <p>It’s been a tough year for Iman and Lexi with the death of Bowie in January, who passed away at age 69 after a long battle with cancer.</p> <p>Bowie’s son Duncan Jones and his wife Rodene Ronquillo <strong><a href="/news/news/2016/08/david-bowies-son-welcomes-baby-boy/">welcomed their first child</a> </strong>exactly six months after the death of the pop icon.</p> <p>Do you think Lexi looks more like her father or mother? Share your thoughts with us in the comments below. </p> <p><strong>Related links: </strong></p> <p><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><strong><a href="/entertainment/movies/2016/07/what-10-stars-looked-like-when-they-were-young/"><em>What 10 stars looked like when they were young</em></a></strong></span></p> <p><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><strong><a href="/entertainment/movies/2016/06/favourite-musical-films/"><em>Our favourite musical films</em></a></strong></span></p> <p><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><strong><em><a href="/entertainment/movies/2016/05/highest-earning-films-of-all-time/">Highest-earning films of all time</a></em></strong></span></p>

News